Minireviews
Copyright ©The Author(s) 2019. Published by Baishideng Publishing Group Inc. All rights reserved.
World J Biol Chem. Jan 7, 2019; 10(1): 7-16
Published online Jan 7, 2019. doi: 10.4331/wjbc.v10.i1.7
Autism and carnitine: A possible link
Caroline Demarquoy, Jean Demarquoy
Caroline Demarquoy, DATSA 71 - Foyer Marie-José Marchand, 5 allée du Carrouge, Sennecey-le-Grand 71240, France
Jean Demarquoy, Université de Bourgogne-Agrosup Dijon, UMR PAM, 6 blvd Gabriel, Dijon 21000, France
Author contributions: Demarquoy C and Demarquoy J contributed both at the design, the writing and the edition of the present manuscript.
Conflict-of-interest statement: Each author declares no conflict of interest.
Open-Access: This article is an open-access article which was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/
Corresponding author: Jean Demarquoy, PhD, Professor, Université de Bourgogne-Agrosup Dijon, UMR PAM, 6 blvd Gabriel, Dijon 21000, France. jean.demarquoy@u-bourgogne.fr
Telephone: +33-380-396316 Fax: +33-380-396330
Received: August 28, 2018
Peer-review started: August 28, 2018
First decision: October 16, 2018
Revised: October 26, 2018
Accepted: November 26, 2018
Article in press: November 26, 2018
Published online: January 7, 2019
Processing time: 121 Days and 21 Hours
Abstract

Patients with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) present deficits in social interactions and communication, they also show limited and stereotypical patterns of behaviors and interests. The pathophysiological bases of ASD have not been defined yet. Many factors seem to be involved in the onset of this disorder. These include genetic and environmental factors, but autism is not linked to a single origin, only. Autism onset can be connected with various factors such as metabolic disorders: including carnitine deficiency. Carnitine is a derivative of two amino acid lysine and methionine. Carnitine is a cofactor for a large family of enzymes: the carnitine acyltransferases. Through their action these enzymes (and L-carnitine) are involved in energy production and metabolic homeostasis. Some people with autism (less than 20%) seem to have L-carnitine metabolism disorders and for these patients, a dietary supplementation with L-carnitine is beneficial. This review summarizes the available information on this topic.

Keywords: Autism; Carnitine; Neurodevelopmental; Metabolism; Pathophysiological bases

Core tip: Autism spectrum disorder is characterized by impaired communication, altered social skills, stereotypical behaviors and limited interests. The pathophysiological bases of autism have not been defined yet. Several publications have pointed a possible connection between autism and carnitine deficiency. Carnitine is a cofactor for a large family of enzymes: the carnitine acyl transferases. Through their action these enzymes are involved in energy production and metabolic homeostasis. Low plasma carnitine were reported in autism patients and for some of them, defects in L-carnitine metabolism have been reported. This review summarizes the available information on the possible link between autism and carnitine.